Nord User Forum

[jonas]

I have recently joined a band as an organ player. There is an old Hammond spinet organ (not sure which model) in the rehersal room, but there are too few keys per manual for my taste and the organ also lacks percussion. So I'm thinking about getting a C2 that I can get for a decent price, both for home practice and band rehersal. As I don't have a car I ride my bike to rehersals (about 20 minutes) so my question to you is if it seems doable to travel that distance by bike twice a week? Or is the organ plus case plus expression pedal too heavy to transport in that way?

[Spider]

the C2 alone is 16 kgs and the softcase is very robust, it is not so light.
I never weighed it, but I guess that organ+case+accessories will be well above 20 kilos.

But more than the weight, the main point is that the case has no straps to carry it as a backpack, and anyway it would be too large and cumbersome.
It is really nice to carry around by hand and the wheels make it perfect to use as a trolley (couldn't you use bus/metro?), but I can't imagine how you could transport it safely on a bike...

[mjbrands]

What about a flight case for the C2 and a bicycle cart? The flight case would protect the C2 even if a car were to drive into your bicycle cart and the bicycle cart would also be handy for other stuff, like getting lots of groceries in one go or a trip to Ikea.

If you subject those Nord softbags to lots of abuse (like airplane travel) they won't last that long and the protection they offer is much less than a real flight case. Of course, depending on the materials used and the way it is constructed, a flight case will easily weigh 8 to 15 kg and will be much more cumbersome than a softbag. Here's a blog from a guy who did a lot of traveling with a C1 in a softbag; I love the 'Excess bagage in Hong Kong' picture.

http://hammond.no/?p=341

Anyway, you could buy a pre-made bicycle cart for something like 100-250 euro (depending on what you get) and a flight case specifically made for the C2 would likely cost you about 125 to 200 euro, depending on the materials used (lighter = more expensive).

Since you can't control the weather, whatever solution you come up with needs to be weatherproof enough to protect your Nord.



Example flight case (several companies can build these for you, some even in red):


This one is funny, I think.

[jonas]

Thank you for the replies. I suppose I did some poor research as I was under the impression that the soft case had straps to carry it as a backpack. Though the suggestions offered by mjbrands are neat, I think I'll view this as an excuse to buy a car instead. I hope I can convince my wife as well.

[pablomastodon]

MJ, those pix are priceless!

Jonas, perhaps you might suggest to your wife that your band have its rehearsals at your place. That may help to convince her that buying a car will be a good idea!

Bless,

Pablo

[Mooser]

If you are a keyboard player and it's necessary to have a small car, consider yourself very lucky. As I remember, an organ player needed a truck, and several people to help, and still ended up with a bad back.
I tried going to gigs on a bicycle, but my make-up got smeared, my wig flew off, all the sequins came off, and I can give you a heartfelt piece of advice: Don't ride a racing-style bicycle in buttless chaps.

[jonas]

So I ended up buying a C2D instead with the soft case. And a car. Thank you for your time.

[Spider]

So I ended up buying a C2D instead with the soft case. And a car.

wow, THAT'S a serious gear aquisition syndrome!

[Mooser]

I'm trading my A-100 and Leslie 45 and M3 and L-100 for a CV (with TrekII perc) and a Leslie 47. All have to come from downstairs around the back of the house, and up two flights to ground level. Most of it over paths, not sidewalk. On the other hand, there's a trapdoor in my studio ceiling, but how to lift the organs out through it?
I shoulda taken up the piccolo, or ther pennywhistle (usually known as the "soprano trombone").

[rippinux]

'i shoulda taken up the piccolo, or ther pennywhistle (usually known as the "soprano trombone").

If i were in your shoes, i would have elected the PICOLO FIFE as my axe of choice. If it exists, i think it would have a range of half an octave. That's still more generous than a concert triangle.
I AM curious about how the CV sounds. Let us all know, Mooser. There are CLONES, & there are Hammonds. rotary club forever !

- robert nuckels